


Every boy has a tale

by fish_wifey



Series: Basketball ghouls [3]
Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Blow Jobs, Falling In Love, Fight between lovers, Getting Together, Humans as food mention, Light Bondage, M/M, Med student Midorima, Mild Gore, Shower Sex, Tokyo Ghoul AU, mild violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-31
Updated: 2015-07-31
Packaged: 2018-04-12 05:52:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4467851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fish_wifey/pseuds/fish_wifey
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tokyo is the city where ghouls reside and hunt. But within busy streets and surrounded by so many people, Takao feels alone at times. Until he picks up a scent unlike anything he has ever known.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Shadow

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LeonaDracontis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeonaDracontis/gifts).



> Our queen demands, and we deliver. After Leona single-handily started the Tokyo Ghoul - Midotakao market, we talked a bit about it, and this turned out to be a story I wanted to write for her .v. Since this is a au, and I’ve never finished reading TG, I’m bullshitting my way through some of the stuff (ﾉ´∀｀*)ﾉ (also sorry Leona that this took forever! I’m glad I appeased your spirit by the Aomomo TG aus www)
> 
> (On the subject of Aomomo) In the aomomo fics were quite some people who didn't know about Tokyo Ghoul, but who still read and enjoyed the au~ Just to be sure for any unknowing people who want to check this fic out: there’s mild gore-implied mentions, as well as talk about eating human flesh AND looking for bodies died of suicide (and eating those). Nothing too explicit in here! I think :D I upped their ages; the boys are older than 18 years and living on their own.

City sounds roar loud through his headphones, which are unable to drown out the noise. The cars and people rushing by, the masses of food store owners screaming ‘Welcome!’ in their obnoxious ways to get customers, all sorts of city noises rise the deeper you enter into the city center.. The sidewalk, busy with people hurrying home, didn’t become an obstacle course. The people didn’t push, even in their haste. He saw children pulling their mothers’ hands, elderly gentlemen talking about last Sunday’s baseball game, and youngsters of all ages, tapping on devices and adding to the loud buzz of the city’s hotpot center.

Three days ago, each and every one of them would have been food material. 

Kazunari grins, a bitter touch to his lips, thumb playing around with the mp3-player to turn the music up a few notches. Raindrops tickle his forehead, and his gaze follows their heritage, seeing the grey clouds darkening above. Quickening steps surround him, the pulled up umbrellas move like cockroaches. Kazunari smiles when the rain starts to pour. Hiding in his collar, he pulls up the hood on his hoodie, ducking low to avoid further wetness on his face. His visual and auditory senses become limited as he cocoons into his shell. He only needs his nose, anyway, avoiding all contact on the streets.

For a second, he thinks has gotten sidetracked into the woods. As if one of those ‘green’ parts in Tokyo appeared out of nowhere and he happened to walk right into it. Trees or leaves didn’t have much of a smell; the earth he’d run on as a kid however, did. The scent of soil comes nearer, step by step. He’s reminded of the walking trees in books, who talk and fight. Kazunari looks up, the child in him waiting to find one such walking tree in the middle of Tokyo’s busiest streets. Nothing else existed but black umbrellas, grey suits, dark brown and plain cut hair; pale and boring faces. Huffing a laugh, he resumes his bowed-forward walking posture, pushing the scent out of his mind. He fingers the ring of his third lobe piercing, teasing away the blood crust formed there.

He shouldn’t have come here in the first place. He should have pushed the weird need to ‘mingle’ with folk off his mind. It did him no good anyway, trying to be ‘human’ and doing ‘human’ things. The two worlds kept on being separated, as they should be. Yet Kazunari couldn’t bring himself to stay still at once place for too long. Just like today.

He’d left the café after trying to sit and enjoy an espresso while watching people; his need to mingle evaporating once their conversations became useless and not as fun to listen to anymore. People eating cakes, describing the tastes, making him pull a hand in front of his face, afraid to retch while thinking about it. Having tried a birthday cake at a friend’s house once -although his parents had told him to stay away from it- the memories of that day made him heave, holding the pain in his stomach.

The scent of the earth soothes him, although he cannot see the bearer. 

Eyes on the pavement as he advances to the subway station which would bring him home, he forgets about the scent, until it hits him in the shoulder. Turning around, hood falling off and his headphones going askew, he watches another black umbrella surge past, the scent leaving with it. The umbrella is up high, its carrier tall amongst the small Japanese.

Standing in the middle of the path made him look silly, and he huffs a laugh. Kazunari shakes the cold feeling of longing off as he descends the stairs to the underground. There’s a rowdy crowd here, hoodlums with bleached hair and pierced ears. On a bad day (well one worse than today), he would have followed them and taken a bite out of the offending limb. The scent of wood still lingers in his nose, however, and he decides against it. He just wants to go home, to forget and be alone.

*~*~*

The rainclouds leave, the scenery reborn in fresh, bright new colours. The city washed and as clean as it ever could be. A week and a half later, the worst of the rain season has passed their horizon, and the city has weathered a few more storms. In the void between, this night feels cool. A rare drop in temperature, as if the weather tries to shed the last degrees off before going ablaze for the August heat.

“Keeh! It’s cold tonight.” Kazunari skips a stone from the roof he stands on, shoulders shrugging warmth through his body. The wind blows in whipping howls, making a mess out of his hair. As he pushes it back and changes how he stands to battle the gusts, he picks up a smell. Memories of woods, leaves rustling, little animals surrounding his feet flooded his senses. Sun-kissed earth warms his bare feet as he wiggled his toes through the undergrowth. Magnetism is a fun thing, and his pulls him towards the direction. Lifting his backpack off the roof and securing it on his shoulders, Kazunari climbs down a ladder and jumps to another, smaller building, following the scent.

Turns out it’s the exact same kind he encountered before. Whistling a happy tune to himself, Kazunari checks for fellow predators, seeing none from this height. Whatever person carries the earthy smell must have been human. Kazunari had never met a ghoul with Mother Nature’s signatures clinging to them.

Crouching on the end of the roof, he observes two figures; the human at one side of the forgotten street, backing away step by step. His hair is a green colour, and he wears glasses that reflect the few lamps in the vicinity, a sharp yellow shine hiding his eyes. The male wore a white button-up collar, the short sleeves ending above the elbows. He looks bookish, probably a strict person who always followed the rules. Even his shoes gleam, fabric softener surrounding his robust aura. Kazunari grins when he sees a rather large dolphin strap peeking out of those straight trouser pockets. It didn’t suit him.

However, the second figure makes Kazunari’s neck hair stand straight. The emperor of the 4th ward, a redheaded, ill-fated ghoul, who often ate more than he needed. Kazunari had never taken a liking to Akashi, or any of his subordinates. The way they ripped through their hunting grounds, one might assume they have bottomless pits for stomachs.

The two didn’t exchange words. The human looks his age, somewhere between 18-20 years old. He looks troubled, but not afraid. As if meeting a ghoul in a dark corner of Tokyo was a mere disturbance of him. Glancing back to Akashi, Kazunari sees the ghoul’s eyes, twisted by the smile stretching out from beneath them. Kazunari couldn’t think of a reason why Akashi would come hunting here, while he had a complete district at his feet.

As a given, Kazunari didn’t give a shit about ghouls hunting and feeding in his surroundings. He never went hungry or had to fight too much for the meat, and he would rather go to places where people had chosen to take their own lives, rather lazy in the aspect of being the perfect killer. Now, if it had been anyone else but these two, he’d might have stood aside to watch. Two things made his eyes blacken, and the red irises stand out:

1\. The earthy scent intrigues him.

2\. He didn’t want Akashi to have even one hair of this human’s head. 

Taking a breath, Kazunari fingers his sneakers, loosens them off his feet, and puts them in his backpack. While he jumps off the roof, his kagune envelop his legs, encasing them in a hard grey and sea-green shell, his feet invisible below the hawk talons as they expand. Between two talons, he grins down to Akashi, enjoying the look of surprised horror spread on his stupid face. Akashi’s defense is out of character, slow and bad, and could be caused from not having fed as much as usual. Kazunari pierces his skin with ease, as he pushes the slight upper body through the air, throwing his opponent across the pavement. Once his talons leave Akashi’s skin, Kazunari lands on his hardened, enhanced feet. He looks around to tell the human to run away.

“I’ll hold him off, you-”

“Interesting kagune.” The interruption is a breath of rustling dry leaves. As if autumn has come early this year. 

“Wh-what?” Blinking, Kazunari watches taped fingers push the glasses up, half hiding the smile behind them. And on top of the fingers are eyes, the same green shade as the hair, observing him. 

“Your legs. They look interesting.” 

“You know, thanks for the compliment, but you should get going if your life is dear to you.” Kazunari cannot help it. There’s a slight panic in his voice. Then again, he had attacked Akashi, and now this impossible man didn’t show the least bit of fear for either of them. Instead, fascinated eyes stare at the backs of Kazunari’s enlarged hawk-like feet. As if he’s a specimen to inspect.

“Allow me to protest,” The stranger came forward, and with him the air of shredded wood. Kazunari hushes him with a hand. Glancing back to where Akashi crawls to stand, Kazunari catches the signal of the two fingers, requesting back up from the subordinates in a nearby car. 

“Protest later, we’ve gotta go!” Not up for a serious fight, Kazunari pulls his outer organs back inside, his jeans ripped from the knees down. Barefoot, he runs to the human, takes his hand, and pulls him into the night. They run, and for a moment Kazunari is afraid he has to slow down for the sluggish limbs next to him. While his bare feet have trouble moving forward, he doesn’t take a moment to put his sneakers on them. The stranger keeps up quite well, and Kazunari gives the credit to being as large as he is.

It’s three blocks to the nearby train station. Dragging the much taller man beside him down the stairs, they settle for the metro. Sitting, Kazunari catches his breath and pulls his shoes out of his backpack. He looks at the stranger as he does so, who introduces himself as Midorima Shintarou. 

“Takao Kazunari. Nice to meet ya.” Checking both ends of the subway, Kazunari feels more at ease. It doesn’t matter where they’re going, as long as he has shaken off Akashi and his team. The head of the 4th ward isn’t known to hold grudges, and probably won’t come after him for tonight’s brawl. 

“Hmph, this train goes into the opposite direction from where I live.” Midorima looks at the subway plan above their heads, typing something on his phone. The dolphin chain attached to it is distracting, and Kazunari touches it with a finger, and plays with it, mind absent of what Midorima says. The dolphin lights up in light blue, white and yellow colours, making water sputtering sounds. 

“You like it?”

“Hmm? Uh, it’s cute yeah? I had to think about my little sister. She loves this stuff.” Kazunari smiles, eyeing the dolphin and it’s pretty lights one last time before tapping his feet on the ground.

“Mine too. I borrowed it from her, just for today.”

“Huh, just today? Don’t you like it?” Kazunari bends forward, his earlier troubles forgotten. The speaker announces the next stop, and whatever Midorima’s answer would have been seems just as forgotten. He stands up, pockets his phone, and looks at Kazunari. The earlier fascinated glance hasn’t died in those eyes. Kazunari makes himself stare back up to the gaze he’s given. This guy called him interesting, when in fact _he_ was the weird one.

“I don’t care for ‘cute’ gimmicks. Fate has it that it was my Lucky Item for today, so I needed it.” Midorima doesn’t give Kazunari room to ask, or laugh about the term ‘Lucky Item’. It sounds like horoscope crap. The subway slows in speed, the tunnel still dark as it nears the next stop. A smile comes on to that pretty face, soft and endearing. “In any case, it fulfilled its duty quite pleasingly.” 

The speaker announces the stop again, this time at the destination. Midorima turns to the exit, then waits before the doors open. 

“Are you coming or not? I haven’t said ‘thank you’ yet.” 

Grinning, Kazunari takes his bag, and leaves the train too.

*~*~*

It’s funny when you never understand other people’s reasoning. Why they do things, how they can like it, how they can live through experiences. The funny part comes in when, at last, you do understand it. Why some of his kind chooses to live with a human, how they like the human, and how they are able to live with them, day by day, without snapping or eating them. The same can be said for the other party, who isn’t afraid or disgusted by the ghoul. For Kazunari, it meant having to deal with his own human, sitting on his couch and leafing through a sports magazine he found on Kazunari’s table.

Shintarou is beautiful. From the perfect, taut skin, to the long limbs, and the perfect fingernails. His long eyelashes and amazing voice were what had Kazunari not minding him being this close and coming over so often. The scent of wood was more overbearing than any scent of human should have. He wondered if it was like this for other ghoul/human friendships, and lovers as well. He makes a mental apology to Aomine and Momoi. Then again, he hadn’t known them well, and had taken the ‘childhood friends’ gig for what it was. 

He and Shintarou had started out as friends, at least for 12 hours. During the first night they met, Shintarou had taken him home. Kazunari had told how he’d seen, or rather smelled, Shintarou earlier. The other feigned a slight disinterest. They had talked all night, until Kazunari grew tired and fell asleep in Shintarou’s bed. When he woke up, there had been long eyelashes, fluttering above him. Soft lips on his chin, and the scent of a whole forest embracing him. The ‘thank you’ came as a whisper, lips brushing for a second it took for Shintarou to speak.

Kazunari had fallen quite hard after that experience. 

Two weeks later, he makes coffee for his frequent visitor. As the brew drips a wonderful aroma through the filter, Kazunari leans against the counter-top, watching Shintarou. They didn’t know each other quite well yet, and it was always on Shintarou’s initiative that they met up. A mutual interest paired with a hot longing kept them together; finding each other in almost kisses and glances that lasted for far too long.

The coffee is done, and so is Kazunari. He sways away from the counter-top, mind hazy. The smile on his open lips is easy, kind of drunk-looking. Shintarou notices him and sets the magazine aside. Kazunari hears a question which he doesn’t answer, as he’s busy sliding himself as sexily as possible across Shintarou’s thighs. He takes pleasure in letting his palms roam the broad shoulders, and making himself quite at ease sitting down in full. Lap full of Kazunari, Shintarou’s mouth runs dry, and he licks his lips, question forgotten. 

“Coffee is ready.” Kazunari says, registering the question and politely answering it. Without further delay, he dips his head to meet Shintarou’s, and kisses him lightly on the lips. Shintarou’s arms snake along his lower back, hands splayed between the shoulder blades. Kazunari eases into the kiss, which feels so right. 

*~*~*

Hanging out with Shintarou is nice, easy. He shows interest in who Kazunari is, where he’d lived, problems he had in previous neighbourhoods. In turn, Kazunari gets to know a lot about Shintarou, too. He’s 20, and lives near Kazunari, on his school campus. A medical man, Shintarou studies at the Tokyo Medical university. It makes Kazunari chuckle; he’d been in that pristine white building once before, he nicked a student’s access card, then, stole off to the nearby university hospital. The bits and pieces of human organs had been a feast he remembers quite well. He doesn’t tell Shintarou this tidbit of information. 

Instead, he waves it off as a vague place he might have seen. Kazunari decides to rather focus on Shintarou, to learn about all the little details that make this whole man. The religious habit of watching a daily horoscope show, the weird way he goes to sleep and has a whole routine beforehand. The first night Kazunari stays at Shintarou’s place, he loses it seeing the night cap. He also loses it in the bed, the first time they share it (without the night cap, of course).

The sex is an amazing addition to their growing relationship, but Kazunari doesn’t see it as necessary. He likes Shintarou’s presence, the incredible scent of nature clinging to his clothes and his sheets. Unintentionally, Shintarou makes him laugh a lot, and also makes Kazunari fall in love with him, the whole of him, including his weird habits.

It’s what makes Kazunari forget to feed properly.

Whenever Shintarou visits Kazunari, or Kazunari comes over to his dorm, they both make sure to have eaten beforehand. This week, due to work, training with his neighbourhood basketball team, and hiding from Akashi’s flunkies, Kazunari didn’t have the time. He comes to Shintarou's door and looks like half of the hallway’s other inhabitants; more dead than alive, dark circles under the eyes, barely able to walk. Weak. Llike them, he holds a cup of strong coffee, and he receives a less than pleasant look from Shintarou.

“Didn’t I tell you to not come here if you’re not feeling good?” Shintarou stands as tall as his doorway, and doesn’t let Kazunari step over the premises of the dorm’s room. Keeping up a weak smile, Kazunari takes a sip of his coffee before answering.

“Shin-chan!” He sing-songs, winking to him. “Shouldn’t you be happy I’m more than willing to see you?” 

“Hmph, not if your body isn’t up for it.” 

Kazunari feels this as a stab to his libido, but shakes it off. He ignores the phone in his sweater’s front pocket, a friend in his ward wanting to meet up at their usual feeding place. Focusing on Shintarou’s less-than-happy face, Kazunari throws in all his charm, leaning against the doorway. “C’mon, Shin-chan. You don’t want me collapsing right in front of your door.”

Reluctant as he is, Shintarou doesn’t want to endanger any of the other students in the hallway. He opens the door wide, and lets Kazunari inside under his arm. Emptying the cup as he does, Kazunari throws it away once he sees Shintarou’s trash bin, and ends up on the bed right after.

“Hah, these are some hard mattresses you guys got here.” Kazunari sighs, still able to fall asleep on top of them any minute now. One thing keeps him awake, which is an orange ball hidden in a corner. He also knows there’s a basketball court near Shintarou, so he makes a mental note to invite him to shoot some hoops.

Shintarou crouches next to him, playing with his hair. Not with his taped fingers of his left hand. Kazunari hums, before a smack makes him sit upright all of a sudden. 

“You can’t stay here if you’re hungry.” Shintarou concludes, then searches for his shoes and coat. “Come on, you told me about that bridge outside the city? We can go look there for food for you.”

“Shin-chan.” This time Kazunari whines the name. He watches Shintarou tying his shoes, the green eyes gazing at him too stubborn, and too pretty, to say no to. Their intent on Kazunari’s well-being and that of the humans surrounding them flares bright in those eyes. They make Kazunari move and sigh, eyeing Shintarou’s water cooker and sachet of cheap coffee. 

“Can I have a cup before we leave?”

*~*~*

The bridge is two stations and fourteen stops away. Kazunari spends those half asleep on Shintarou’s arm. The coat should smell of the lavender fabric softener Shintarou uses, but Kazunari only picks up the earthy scents of soil. He wriggles his toes in his boots in a reaction to it, his sleepy hum breathing out as the speakers inform them of their final stop.

He leans on Shintarou while they walk up the stairs out of the station, and down another set to get beneath the bridge. Kazunari smells the alcohol on the homeless men living here, but follows the strong, inviting scent of death further away. Once he reaches the destination of another suicide, he pushes himself of Shintarou and tells him off, to stay away and out of hearing distance. 

“Don’t worry. I brought something to keep me company.” Shintarou smiles, nestling the earbuds of his mp3-player into his ears. They’re quite unusual today; instead of the plain black ones, these have sunflowers with faces and smiling bumblebees added, the rest of the cord in bright green. Kazunari eyes them while Shintarou turns, not even wondering about today’s Lucky Item.

The feeding is done as quickly as Kazunari can manage it to be. The strength returns to his fingers and toes, and he feels it rush through his being. He leaves the rest for any other takers and texts his friend at last.

Kuroko isn’t too happy. The worry in his last mails has a scolding undertone. He cannot help but laugh when he reads those blank kaomoji, which express Kuroko’s own face so beautifully in pixels. Kazunari is not off the hook until he promises to accompany Kuroko and his partner to a certain cafe in the 20th ward. The happy, excited kaomoji that follow in the mail make Kazunari chuckle.

“Are you quite done yet? It’s getting colder, and I cannot afford getting sick during exams.” 

Kazunari jumps up when he hears Shintarou behind him, and cannot cover the half eaten body in front of him anymore. He has to remind himself that Shintarou studies to be a doctor, and dead, decomposing, ripped-open bodies shouldn’t be too troubling for him. Still, it sets Kazunari off in a weird way. 

“The fuck Shin-chan!? Don’t look.” Kazunari holds his arms wide to hide as much of the dead body as he can, but Shintarou has none of it. Instead, he comes closer, bending forward to inspect the body. 

“The liver and most of the flesh. Are those your favourite parts?” 

“N-no? Well, I don’t think much about it. Everything is edible, so it shouldn’t matter.” Kazunari gets up and starts walking away, glad when Shintarou follows. He starts to feel the chill Shintarou mentioned earlier, and shakes when a breeze cross his unprotected neck. They move away from the bridge, but don’t go back to the station yet. His hopes of dropping his food intake are crushed when they walk on the lamplight lit streets. 

“And the heart?” 

“Shin-chan,” Kazunari whispers, eyes watching a bunch of girls giggling past them. “Not so loud.” 

Without giving the group of girls laughing ahead of them a single look, Shintarou obliges Kazunari’s wish by standing close to him, bowing his head downwards to whisper in Kazunari’s ear. 

“What about the heart? Did you ever eat one, or do you, rather, focus on the rest? It’s interesting to know.” Shintarou’s half-lidded gaze, and the heaviness and implication in his question, both have Kazunari look away for a moment. The larger body stands so close to Kazunari that his mind gets all hazy from the scent that should be lavender but just isn’t. He never thought about eating, or even hurting Shintarou. But now he wonders about that heartbeat, and if it raises just for him. If it pumps blood faster being near Kazunari.

If it gets just as erratic in down moments such as these. When everything should be fine but just _isn’t_.

He hates that Shintarou has him worked up so easy, while unraveling him, and understanding Kazunari in a way he hadn’t thought about understanding himself even. Kazunari never ate another person’s heart, in his back of his mind the thought that he shouldn’t, that it’s wrong. It’s just an organ, just food, just chambers and strings and blood. Just a thing to be broken, ripped out, stomped on. To be drawn in corners of notebooks and desks and sometimes on top of i’s where a dot should belong. To have crayons fill in the lines with red or black or blue, or leave it empty. An emoticon send to lovers and families, to friends you’re cozy with or when you’re drunk. 

It should be nothing but food for Kazunari, but when he thinks of Shintarou’s heart, it just isn’t.

“Heh, maybe I don’t eat hearts on principle. The same reason that I don’t go anywhere near the genitals, either.” Kazunari laughs, the uneasiness to be understood by another person, a human being, not as unsettling as it had been seconds ago. He glances back at Shintarou, eyes glues to those long lashes gracing the top of the cheeks, pale in the cold night out. His gaze drops to the lips, all pretty after he put lip balm on for protection against that same cold. Shintarou needs all kind of protection; from his taped fingers to his coat, to his scarf and to his long socks hiding beneath his trousers. He needs Lucky Items and the protection of the gods and the star signs. 

Kazunari’s eyes drop to the chest, and he opens Shintarou’s coat on instinct. There’s no protest from above, and any he would have might as well die on his lips when Kazunari’s hand crosses to the place Shintarou’s heartbeat resounds against Kazunari’s palm.

It’s not erratic in the least. A calm, soothing tone. It’s one that Kazunari wants to keep alive and unharmed.

“Don’t worry, Shin-chan. Your heart is quite safe with me.”

“Tch, stupid. I’d hope so.” Not minding the giggling girls or the other onlookers stopping to watch, Shintarou bows down the last bit of distance between them, and kisses Kazunari, whose hand doesn’t leave the beating chest until their lips part again.

*~*~*

They end up back at Shintarou’s place. Most of the students in his hallway are asleep or cramming for exams that aren’t even close yet. Kazunari glances at the open books. Shintarou has copies of anatomy, a skeleton with over eighty lines connecting to words. Aside from it all are neat pencil drawings Shintarou made himself. Watching Shintarou study from time to time, Kazunari knows they have nothing to do with memorization or detailed learning. Instead of doodling or listening to music, Shintarou takes solace in drawing masterpieces while he studies. 

Kazunari looks through the desks and the numerous sketchbooks, but cannot find a drawing of a heart.

“Say, Shin-chan,” Kazunari starts, ignoring Shintarou’s order not to mess up his desk too much. “Why do you watch such stuff?”

Shintarou has the audacity to look around his small dorm, scant of any devices that could have him ‘watch’ anything. Before the question ‘watch what?’ can arise, Kazunari elaborates. “At the bridge, when I fed. Why did you come over to see?”

Changed into his night outfit, Shintarou sits on the bed and gives Kazunari a searching look. The pajama pants are checkered in plain beige and white colours, and the fabric ends end up high above Shintarou’s ankles. He left out the top for tonight, although it’s been so cold outside. The absence of fabric to cover the upper torso distracts Kazunari for the seconds it takes Shintarou to answer at last. 

“I’m studying ghouls.”

“You what!?”

“I said,” Shintarou starts, but Kazunari interrupts him, hands waving into an x-form and out wide again. 

“No need to repeat, Shin-chan. I heard you the first time, but what the hell? Why would you have such an interest?” Kazunari sits next to him on the bed, then elbows him in the sides. “Are you one of those fanatic little know-it-all conspiracy thinkers?”

“Please, I am not a fanatic. I- had a mild interest once I knew ghouls lived in Tokyo. Investigation doesn’t yield much if you don’t want to raise suspicion, and endanger your own life like that.” Shintarou pushes the glasses on his nose up, eyes shut before he faces Kazunari again. “I happen to think it’s a fascinating kind.”

The laughter vanishes from Kazunari’s lips, and he wonders if Shintarou knew that Akashi is a ghoul too. That question dies on his lips as well, when Shintarou pulls his arms.

“Now, let me study you, you fascinating thing.” Lying on his back, Shintarou drags Kazunari over him. The latter cannot help but laugh. Once his arms are free, he lets them roam over Shintarou’s skin, coming to understand why the top half of his pajamas is still folded beneath the pillow. The serious look on Shintarou’s face has Kazunari in need to hide his laugh in the crook of his neck.

“Anything for you, Shin-chan.”


	2. Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Every coin has two sides.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things will get interesting :D

Falling asleep after sex was one thing.

Waking up to a suave Shintarou leaning half naked against the tiny bathroom doorway, beckoning him inside, all smiles and want, is another. 

Sleepy as he is, Kazunari smiles and cannot believe his luck. He rolls out of bed, doesn’t bother picking up his underwear, and follows Shintarou in the little bathroom. They can barely stand inside together, and Shintarou’s already in the shower. The shower head ends up somewhere below his throat. It made Kazunari laugh the first few times he saw Shintarou (trying) to take his showers in a cool peace here. He can only grin when the water runs down the smooth, hard edged body. Having a thing for male backsides in general, Kazunari skips inside, hugging Shintarou from behind, and making him turn around only to kiss his chest.

The wet, long arms go around Kazunari’s neck and back, one hand ruffling through his wettening hair. It’s so cozy that Kazunari forgets about having another awesome round of sex with this beautiful man, too busy enjoying the sharing of body heat, while the water runs down them both. Kazunari fits beneath the shower head, an inch apart from the thing, and Shintarou turns him so he can start to soap up his back. The hands, naturally, go down to Kazunari’s ass.

“Hmm, let’s see what I’m going to do you with you, Takao.”

Smile widening, Kazunari hides his face in Shintarou’s strong chest, his own arms sliding down to the small of Shintarou’s back. It’s not that he’s shy; not after the many times they’ve done it. It’s just that he can feel this certain baritone from Shintarou’s voice in his forehead, and it makes his body tingle all over with anticipation. His voice in general could have Kazunari on his knees.

Which is exactly where he ends up.

It’s not that he can do much about it. As if a rainstorm went through a forest, the small bathroom fills itself to the brim with steam and Shintarou’s odour. It goes through Kazunari’s pores, excites his lower regions, and at last his eyes darken over in black, pierced by red pupils. Hands on Shintarou’s nonshivering hips, Kazunari smiles, all warm and loving, before he starts to kiss and lick the cock hanging half-hard in front of him. It hardens fast in Kazunari’s mouth, who hollows his cheeks and hums deep. The sensation has Shintarou’s hands as usual in Kazunari’s hair, more of a massage than a tight grip. More of a ‘thank you’ than an encouragement. 

Tilting his head to the side to give Shintarou the view he deserves to see, Kazunari’s tongue rolls around the cock’s head. Taking his time doing this isn’t for preparation, but to hail all sorts of love on him. Plus, Kazunari has been the one who always came first. He’d like to give Shintarou a proper head start for once. Letting his hand join at the base to pump a few inches his lips cannot reach, Kazunari keeps humming around the top, his prayers and confessions all bundled up together.

When he feels Shintarou’s thighs quiver under his palms, he glances to the sky, careful not to get water into his face too much. Not to worry, as Shintarou is there to wipe it for him. The quivering thighs follow a breathless approval and urgent wish to intensify their current situation. Kazunari lets himself be picked up by his wrists, then picked up again under his knees. On instinct, his arms snake around Shintarou’s neck, and they start kissing while Shintarou’s fingers pry him open.

The kiss deepens, tongue and saliva adding up to the hot exchange under the hot stream running down their bodies. Once Shintarou thinks Kazunari is ready, he enters him, not minding going slow. He’s a university student, and time is of the essence during his mornings. Oha-asa could be on any moment.

Instead he’s here with Kazunari, sly grin widening when he’s completely inside. Shintarou whispers some stuff into Kazunari’s ear, who can barely progress half of the words. Not when Shintarou’s fingers, bare of any tape, are on his ass. It’s just some stuff about Kazunari being handsome, perfect, and everything Shintarou needs. He tries not to cry out in love and joy when Shintarou starts ramming into him at a high pace, while making sure to find Kazunari’s sweet spot as soon as possible. 

Sooner than Kazunari likes, that it. It doesn’t take long for him to have his nails dig into Shintarou’s skin, raspy voice moan-whispering Shintarou’s full first name. He cannot keep his eyes open, has no idea if his pupils are still red or back to the steel grey. He cannot do much but have his limbs constrict around Shintarou’s large, moving frame, his fingers finding sanctuary in the wet green hair. His skin doesn’t feel the water drops pitter-pattering all over him anymore; it’s too tingly and focused on Shintarou; on the heat they generate between them. 

The head-start proves useless when Shintarou’s moans are interrupted by his deep, soft laughs. They’re at Kazunari’s ear, and he follows them up with flicks of his tongue, teasing Kazunari without mercy. The tongue leaves for teeth, pulling at Kazunari’s ear and teasing his lobe piercings. Together with that, he pulls all sorts of strings inside of Kazunari, who cannot keep it together, or in for that matter, any longer. Shintarou’s arms have his legs spread over, while still holding him at the ass, which he spreads wide to glide inside. Kazunari delirium takes shape when Shintarou’s forehead falls on his shoulder, and his cocks homes in on him harder and more reckless. 

“There is no shame here, Kazunari. I love it when you come before me. When your body tightens all around me. You don’t even know how your voice, your mute screams and your nails set me off, do you?” Shintarou nuzzles his neck, tongue reaching out to lick the dip in his collarbone. He kisses his jaw, too, before retreating to his safe haven in Kazunari’s neck. “You’re so perfect, and so beautiful. Please come for me, Kazu.” 

It’s hard to deny the pretty long lashes fluttering against his skin anything. Even more so when the request is a barely there breath, shaken and begging. Kazunari makes an attempt to nibble at Shintarou’s ear, his voice unable to pronounce his name any longer. When he comes, its one of those breathless, voiceless gasps spilling over his over lips, which Shintarou shouldn’t be able to hear, but feel against his cheek. Kazunari kisses it, tries to calm down and keep clenching his sensitive ass for all its worth, just to give Shintarou the most sensational feeling he could possibly receive. 

He likes seeing Shintarou’s shoulder blades move and warp beneath his flesh, a known sign for his imminent orgasm. Kazunari laughs, eyes half-lidded, and his lips pressed to Shintarou’s ear. He always pays his debts in kind to his lover. 

“You’re so sexy when you can barely stand or hold it together, Shin-chan. You wanna come, hmm? It’s pleasurable and hot, right? Wanna mess me up and come inside, don’t you?” Kazunari bites his ear when Shintarou’s nails drag over his ass, and he knows he hit the right spot with his words. He keeps talking Shintarou through his orgasm, until he comes, not so silent as he looks. He’s loud, all moans and curses, clenched eyes and gritted teeth while he spills himself inside of Kazunari.

They stay like this for a while, letting the water clean them off, but not cool them down in any way.

“Can you stand?” Shintarou whispers, his eyes still hidden from Kazunari’s sight. The latter nods, and is put down immediately. Lips brush his neck, the nose above tracing the path up first. A warm hum starts in the back of Kazunari’s neck, and he cannot tell if it is Shintarou or himself who does the sound. He only believes they’re both content. The hands play with his ass, tease him a little. Shintarou laughs, a warm thing on top of Kazunari’s head. “Good. I can’t hold you but… We can go on still.”

Kazunari braces himself, smile widening on his face as he puts it against the tiles, half of his face turned to Shintarou. He doesn’t mention Oha-asa to him; might blow his chances for a good fuck. 

“Yes, that we can do.”

*~*~*

The most memorable things happen on days you least expect them too. Days beginning as if you descended from heaven and nothing could go wrong. When you kiss your boyfriend who you’re really starting to fall for on the lips, just before he has to go to his classes. Which you spend looking at recipes, to maybe try and cook for your human, to share a meal even though you won’t touch it. And you forget something as simple as salt, and go back to the store to get it. Days so ordinary, when something out of the blue happens, it kicks you in the gut.

Literally.

Kazunari thought about it after he got three knee-kicks in his gut. About to hold on the attacker and pay back the favor, before he’d ask what the hell is going on, a fist collided with his face, and he flew through the air, landing with a discomforting noise on his shoulder, tumbling onto his stomach. Crawling on his hands, lifting his eyes, a nightmare unfolded in front of his eyes.

Nebuya, rubbing his knuckles; Hayama, patting his knee, grinning; Mibuchi, stretching his arms above his head, tilting his head side to side with a promising sound. Behind them, Mayuzumi, ever the timid, opened the door of a limousine. Red hair followed by a black suit, shiny shoes tapping onto the pavement, worried words about the drop of weather, drifting to Kazunari like the expensive scent of cologne. Nebuya shifts to the side, letting his boss step through. 

“Well, if it isn’t Kazunari-kun.”

Attacking Akashi never had been his brightest plan, and it appears the payback would hurt five times as such. Bile, blood, and the promise of broken teeth and bones assemble in Kazunari’s mouth, as well as a few swear words. Apparently, Akashi did hold a grudge, after all.

*~*~* 

Spitting out blood, the coppery taste ran down the corners of his mouth, dripping of his chin and down his collar. 

“Now, that’s not how we greet our kind, do we, Kazunari-kun.”

“I never knew we were acquainted enough to be so friendly, Sei-kun.”

“Tsk, there’s where you go wrong; as a superior being to you low-life, I can speak to you however I want. Some of your friends nicknamed you Hawk, right? Doesn’t he resemble a filthy cockroach more, mhn, Reo?”

“Absolutely.” Mibuchi smiled, and Hayama’s mouth split in two. The two of them moved forward, eyes intend. Akashi commanded them to bring Kazunari at his feet, so he could stomp the cockroach, and rid Tokyo of the vermin. 

Fighting each of these alone would have been hell enough, but all three at once… death would take him. He shouldn’t have pissed off Akashi. Yet, thinking about letting Shintarou die… Shintarou, who was waiting for him at his place, worried, maybe the one sending texts messages right now. Kazunari felt the buzz in his jeans. Jeans still intact; he should have eaten yesterday, when he had had the chance. A full stomach would do wonders here, maybe give him a chance to flee. 

“You shouldn’t have attacked Sei-chan.” Mibuchi stopped to undo his sleeves, pulled them up to his elbows. “That was rather stupid of you.”

“Yea, bird brain!” Hayama grinned, mad with the desire to see Kazunari’s blood and intestines spilled on the floor. They were told to bring him to Akashi, a few meters away, so he could kill Kazunari himself. Nothing mentioned in which state they should carry him there. The way they geared up, it would only take seconds for their kagune to appear and bring the pain.

Something shiny catches his eyes. Lifting his head skywards, his eyes squint. For a stupid moment, the memory of a dolphin swaying in bright blue, white and yellow colours flashes before his eyes. Filtering the noise in front of him, he gives up the hope for help from above.

And that’s exactly the time when it came.

A tiny, pink and purple shaded hexagonal plate, floats firm and upright between him and his oncoming attackers. The air stills, silence pierces when the sounds hail down from above. The tiny, lone shield is joined by fast-zooming, connecting to others. 

In a flash of light, more hexagonal plates, all the same size and with the same width, form a barrier. Each time Kazunari blinks in wonder, the wall increases in height, already going from side to side of the alleyway. Sitting back, watching the plates solidify, the thin kagune wall grows to 12 meters. Seeing a shadow leap off the roof, Kazunari squints his eyes, wondering who had come to his aid. Asking himself what kind of ghoul would be able to use his predatory organ in such a fashion, disattached from the body, a solid defense. The shadow lands on the top of the thin creation, balancing himself on the hand-thick edge. Kazunari couldn’t see anything through it. A silhouette of himself shimmers back at him, faint. It moves when he moves. 

A disturbance runs through his spine, caused by heavy blows he feels in the ground, shaking his knees. For a second, Kazunari thinks Tokyo has been hit by an earthquake. The idea dies when he hears loud swears from the other side, mingling with cracking bones, and Hayama screaming. _They’re attacking it, but nothing goes through. Instead, the power vibrates off it, even through the concrete…_ His fascination builds, and Kazunari is eager to thank his nameless saviour. Strength returning to his limbs, Kazunari’s hands grab behind him, pulling himself up the fence. 

The wall moves. Thin as it had been created, it starts to lower in height, carrying the shadowy figure down. Meanwhile, the plates divide themselves to both sides, the front and the back, thickening the wall. Whoever they belong too, he stood firm as it spreads below his feet. The shadowed figure and his wall lower more and more, coming down to the height of the streetlamps. A single sparkle catches Kazunari’s eye. 

And the smell of earth comes with it.

It knocks his knees out of balance, shakes his spine with shivers, and makes his teeth grind in denial- _it can’t be him_. The truth however, carries green hair, visible above the brown leather jacket and black jeans. Shintarou’s back is turned to him, and the kagune stops from changing, now a mere 3 meter high wall.

“Have you had enough, Akashi?”

“Fancy seeing you here and… in such a way, Shintarou. What made you change your mind?” Akashi’s tone changes, underlining a familiarity with the man, the _human_ Kazunari had thought he’d known. One thing after another, blows were dealt out not only to Kazunari’s physique; they pound more painfully into his soulless void of a shell, resonating loudly in the emptiness he thought he had filled with Shintarou’s presence. As if in a haze, he watches the familiar movement of Shintarou’s fingers going to his face, something he’s seen daily for the past few weeks, now with the back turned on him. He couldn’t believe a single part of it. _But he had been human this morning._

“I haven’t, not in the way you wanted me too. However, you asked to see the progression of my ‘weapon’, and as such, I present it to you. Nebuya, you might stop hurting yourself. My koukaku plates are indestructible.” Shintarou didn’t look at him, speaking to Akashi and his men as if he’d known them all along. Bowing his head, Kazunari shakes it, the disbelief still strong in him. Not understanding what’s happening right before his own damn eyes. _He’s supposed to be human…_

“Shinta-”

“Enough of your words, Akashi. If you want a fight, so be it. Sagittarius is ranked last on Oha Asa, while Cancer is second place. I have my lucky item with me. If you feel like testing your strength, go wild on my kagune as much as you please. I don’t care. You don’t stand a chance.” The sound of his shoes sliding over the wall’s not-so-thin-anymore width brings Kazunari’s face to look at him again. The human-turned-ghoul widens his stance, shoulders tense. “However, I will not let you harm Takao.”

_Oh, now he remembers I am here._

“Mhnn? He’s an acquaintance of yours? On the night he interrupted our talk, I thought he’d come to pick a fight with you.”

“Yes, and as the good friend, which you have always been, you came straight to my rescue,” Shintarou’s voice mocks Akashi in every syllable, a tone Kazunari had never heard leave his lips. Then again, minutes ago, there had been a lot of things he’d never imagine Shintarou doing. 

“I-” Akashi tries to interrupt, but Shintarou has nothing of it. 

“I have had enough, Akashi. Five years ago, you called my weapons silly, useless, and not befitting for a ghoul. What, you’ve heard some rumors, and thought you could drive your car in my neighborhood, and make me your subordinate? I don’t need you, your offerings, or anything that remotely has to do with you.” Shintarou removes his jacket and throws it behind him, revealing his white shirt, ripped all along the back. It’s full of holes; hexagonal scaling shining through the shreds of what’s left. 

“Understand this, I do need Takao. I won’t let you or your men harm him further. If you want to fight, fine.” Some plates move off the wall, and form a shell around Shintarou’s arms and fists in the shaped of elongated, glorified boxing gloves befit for a ghoul. ”But know that you will lose.” 

Silence greets the wall, the man on top, and Kazunari safe behind it. Shuffling shoes and car doors Kazunari can hear but does not see, signal leaving. He hears Hayama and Nebuya moaning in pain.

“Shintarou, if we could go somewhere private, I’d explain-”

“No. The 6th ward is under my protection, and I don’t want to see your face on my turf ever again. Tell your ‘friends’ that Ootsubo’s will is left in my care: never sway, never give up. I will fight whoever you care to send, if you can find anyone better than your four henchmen.” A grumbling, protesting sound arose from three different people at once, cut off sharp by Akashi’s hiss. The plates going up to Shintarou’s arms shimmer as if satisfied; their strength is nothing to underestimate. 

“Leave.” The word spoken, a command followed by the start of an engine and the squeak of tires driving off. The plates shimmer once more from left to right, a hundred hexagonal plates showing their borders. They do it once more, until the car is gone. Once it's deemed safe, they come apart, flying back to Shintarou’s skin, becoming one with it. As they vanish hence they came, the wall decreases in length, melting in height, bringing Shintarou’s two feet back to the ground.

Only then, he turns around to face Kazunari, red irises tiny within the black void. The fair face Kazunari knew so well, the long eyelashes now disappearing along the blackness. 

“Takao, I am-”

*~*~*

Shintarou wants to say that he’s sorry, wants to say how glad he is Takao didn’t get off any worse before he came here, wants to explain his relation with Akashi. He wants to take Takao away to feed, wants him to regain his strength so they could talk. Above all, Shintarou wants to talk, explain the situation, make him understand why he chose to act like this. To hide like this. 

He has no time to act when Kazunari attacks. The same Kazunari he’s grown fond off, kissed the forehead; the same man he’s been seduced, entranced, and loved by. The same Kazunari he’s fallen for, like a helpless fool who didn’t know better. That same Kazunari came running without a battle cry, fists hardened, an arm pulling back. 

Shintarou couldn’t say what he was, when the fist collides- knuckles against jaw. Bruises from punches instead of a mouth peppering kisses alongside of it

“You! Filthy lying bastard!” Kazunari punctuates every word, spitting fire as he does. He tackles Shintarou to the ground, who wills his defense mechanism to stay in control and at bay, his back humming with an alarmed spread, while every word Kazunari says punctuates with a fist to his face; the rage so fierce he sometimes misses and hits the concrete beneath Shintarou instead. “Fucking, damned- bloody, shithole!” Shintarou raises his arms, grabbing Kazunari’s elbows and making him stop; the arms, as well as the body sitting on him, shake with anger, hurt and betrayal. 

“Takao, please listen to me, I am-”

“A ghoul! You’re a goddamned _ghoul_! Never fucking told me, did you even freaking consider telling me, at all!? Was it convenient for you that Akashi attacked me tonight, hah!? Did you plan this with your old buddy, ‘hey Seijirou, how about you fuck up Takao and I can play the knight in shining armour,’ except you’re a bloody fucking ghoul covered in kagune!”

The rage is too real to deal with, so when a single hexagon piece slips out, Kazunari’s leg transforms. Ripping through flesh, it forms the known hawk leg. The speed of the attack gives Shintarou no chance to control his own kagune, as well as dealing with Kazunari as he is right now has him rattled. Before he can stop it, the talon rips in half, and the pain goes through Kazunari’s marrow. He bites it down, the kagune disappearing, the hexagon piece not having a scratch.

“Fool, I never wanted to see you hurt,”

“Well I am fucking now!” Blood spat on his face, Kazunari’s eyes ablaze with darkness, hunger pouring out of the little red circles. As the outrage won’t die down by talking, Shintarou puts aside all rationality and goes for an abnormal maneuver. Using his strength, he flipped Kazunari, placing himself on top of him. Of course, the struggle intensifies, angry eyes and gritting teeth sputtering defiance and cold blooded murder. Kazunari’s skin alight with the same fire, Shintarou keeps his grip tight on the arms, leaning in to kiss the yelling mouth. Brushing lips turn out to be a clacking of teeth, a headbutt following the failed attempt.

“Don’t you dare,” His lungs are desperate for air as he says so, and Kazunari’s voice drops to the lethal, threatening octave, deeper and less forgiving. “If you try that one more time, I will kill you-” Hands on the wrists, the wrists pushed on the cement, Shintarou bows his head once more, his mouth open as he claims Kazunari’s. The head beneath him moves, struggling to lose the hold, only angling the head the same way whenever Kazunari would deepen a kiss. Far too trusting, Shintarou let his tongue slip through the lips, sliding against Kazunari’s.

Instead of biting the tongue off, Kazunari engages, his rage transforming to whimpering objections. It takes a full minute for him to calm his nerves and stop moving beneath Shintarou, their kiss returning to something less feral and disorganized.

“I was curious as to why you couldn’t tell what I was in the beginning. When I told you that I studied ghouls, I didn’t lie, Takao. You were always more than a study project to me, and I wanted to tell you-”

“Shut up. So what, you smell like- like earth and the forest I played at as a kid. You actually stink like wet grass and dry leaves that crumple in autumn. You stupid tree-trunk head! You’re just- uplifted roots trying to trip me up. Just shut up!” Kazunari falls silent when he talks about Shintarou’s smell, but then remembers he’s mad at him. As he uses nature comparisons to ridicule Shintarou, the latter has to try not to laugh. He has to explain himself, make Kazunari understand. If he can’t… He shakes his head, keeps talking as if he hadn’t been called a ‘tree-trunk head’.

“-once we started being serious. I couldn’t in the beginning, never found a right moment,”

“Shut the fuck up, Shintarou.”

“-there’s this thing, trust issues, I couldn’t tell you right away, so I didn’t tell the truth when you presented me with so many occasions to come clean.” The words he had kept mulling over for a while, rushed from his quick speaking mouth, hoping he could explain himself well enough to earn Kazunari’s forgiveness.

“I swear to it, stop talking or-” Kazunari’s voice cracked in ways Shintarou never meant it to, eyes watching the silver grey orbs flickering, before they changed back to murderous void. Following the order, Shintarou put his forehead to Kazunari’s, breathing in the same air as he did. “I will kill you.”

“I’m positive that you won’t,”

“Fucking asshole, I will rip you limb for limb-”

“You couldn’t,” Shintarou smiled, knowing nothing else to do. Slipping his palms over the wrist, into Kazunari’s hands, fingers slipping haphazardly and mismatching between the wrong amount of Kazunari’s; ring and middle finger residing between Kazunari’s pinky and ring finger, thumb and index enclosing two fingers and the thumb at once. “The Takao I know wouldn’t kill me,.”

“Why so sure, huh? You deserve it.”

“I most certainly do. You can beat me to a pulp, after you hear me out, I won’t defend myself. You won’t kill me. All your hate and your hurt, I will accept it.”

“Then why- _why_ ”

“Because I also accept all your love, Kazunari.” It was half a bluff, borne from baseless confidence, created in earnest hopes. He denied the thought of ‘wishful thinking’, biting down on his bottom lip to will back some kind of wetness threatening his eyes. Shintarou, overcome with shame to have make his lover feel this way, kisses whatever part of the face he could reach, slipping down the jawline to peck at the throat with featherlight touches.

When their eyes met, they were ghoul eyes; one searching and still angry, the other faking a smile in hopes to make this work the right way.

“You’re hungry.” Shintarou doesn’t have to hope on that one. He saw Kazunari take on Akashi once, and today he got beaten to the ground. Kazunari ate too little yesterday, and needs more.

“Fucking starving.” Kazunari agrees, shoulders slumping, the fight out of him. There’s half a smile on his lips, which he doesn’t allow to come since it would give Shintarou the upper hand. He looks away, acting as if he didn’t see it, while restraining a triumphant smile on his own. 

“Let’s go. I can find us something edible.”

*~*~* 

As expected of Shintarou, he leads them somewhere nice. It was a ghoul restaurant, outside his own ward. Not everyone could just walk into this exclusive estabishment, and the food was nicely presented too (without having to watch it being butchered first). Kazunari didn’t think too much about his surroundings, about the masks and the looks they got. Taking his time for his meal, he and Shintarou share a comfortable silence. They get as far as eating as much until they had their fill, then steal away to a quiet place to have some fun. 

Shintarou moves around as if he knows this place as well as his own, as well as Kazunari’s. He opens up doors and drags Kazunari through red velvet hallways, with expensive looking furniture, art, and flowers lining up to a black wooden door. They enter another high quality looking room, all velvet and fine leather sofas and chaise longues. Locking them from the inside, and enabling their privacy, Shintarou descends on Kazunari. 

His mood lifts up for the better, and he even smiles when Shintarou works open his buttons and zippers. The teasing to his neck and ears work wonders, too. It’s a good thing his lover knows where his right spots are, and how to work them properly.

“You’re an animal, you know that?” Kazunari breathes out, shirtless already. Shintarou gives him a mean look, then his expression softens, waiting for an explanation of such a base term used to describe him. “I mean, we're gonna fuck where we ate? And then what, fall asleep where we fucked?” 

Shintarou looks around the establishment. There’s a velvet couch next to the leather one, nice drawings and drapings, silence all around them. An acquaintance of Shintarou’s had taken care of a variety of lubrication, condoms, and toys to let them at it all night, in any way they would deem pleasant. Kazunari thinks they could even get extra food up here. It pleases him that Shintarou had pulled out all the stops. It goes a long way towards apologizing, although Kazunari will have him do some more of that, without words, that is. He swaggers over to the table with the toys, finding enough leather straps and masks to host a whole party. 

“Hey, Shin-chan. Remember how you always make me come first? Maybe it’s time for you to stop doing that.” Kazunari is not one for rough play, and he leaves the tougher works behind him. Binding Shintarou, being able to dictate the pace as he pleases, and slide off Shintarou before he’d drive him over the edge sounds like a good idea. He watches Kazunari, a moment before his smile returns. Naked from his jacket and dress shirt that had been ripped in the back, Shintarou puts them over a chair, then sits down on the chaise longue, arms above him.

“If the thought of me bound for your pleasure arouses you so much, there’s nothing for me to do but accept, isn’t there? And anyway, I’m sure I can outlast you, even if you’d be so petty to use orgasm denial against me.” Shintarou is all smiles and taut muscles, his hands fists above the chaise longue headboard. Kazunari walks over, slides on top of the long legs, leather straps in hand. He bows over for a kiss, trying not so hard to keep his dirty smile off his mouth.

“Oh, is that how we’re going to do this?”

“Seems so. I might be out of luck though.” Shintarou teases him, biting his bottom lip. It doesn’t last long before Kazunari pulls away. His lower regions all but drag themselves all over Shintarou’s lap, letting his need be felt through the fabrics still between them. Even now, Kazunari is curious about Oha-asa’s predictions of the day. He puts it to question.

“Lucky Item left somewhere?” While keeping eye contact, Kazunari loops the leather straps in place. The furniture here has special circles all lined up on top, perfect for this kind of game. He makes sure the straps are tight around Shintarou’s wrist, but that they won’t hurt him or cut off his blood circulation. 

“No, I got it with me. Gemini is on 2nd place, and Scorpio is placed 6th, quite high for someone who got his ass kicked.” The comment has Shintarou pay in moans; Kazunari removes his underwear, dragging his nails over Shintarou’s hard member. He fumbles with his balls, keeping the touch there light and simple, and not enough to give Shintarou proper joy. The latter moans nonetheless, all anticipation. 

“Is that so? Than how come Shin-chan would be out of luck?”

Smiling, Shintarou tests his arms. He might have gotten out of his bounds if he tried, or maybe these were special infused leather straps that tapped his power. Either way, he keeps lying down, watching Kazunari. “Well you see, I’ve fallen for a man, and now I can’t get up,” He plays with the shackles on his skin again. “He bound me to himself, you see.”

“Hmmm, that’s quite unlucky.” Kazunari drops down on top of him, kisses him softly. “To be with such a terror.”

Eyelashes flutter, Shintarou’s longer ones across Kazunari’s cheek. When they open their eyes, it’s the exact same pair, gazing at each other. They are bound in a bond that deepened after tonight’s revelations. Kazunari feels his forgiveness seep through his softer touches, how he removes Shintarou’s remaining clothes. He had slipped one of the tubes of lubrication in his own pocket, and takes it out before his own trousers also land on the floor. Slowly, he preps Shintarou’s manhood, making sure it’s slick and hard. 

“Yeah. A terror.” Shintarou’s breath becomes unsteady, watching Kazunari, his arm, his pumping hand. Giving his new name more meaning, Kazunari turns around on Shintarou’s stomach, doesn’t flop down, but holds his ass up a bit to give Shintarou a show. Slick fingers enter in his hole, and he stretches himself open, while Shintarou watches. Kazunari’s other hand still works on Shintarou’s penis, teasing the darkening top there. Three fingers inside, Kazunari bends down, enough to take Shintarou in his mouth.

“A real- horrifying. Terror.” Shintarou groans out, his stomach taut between Kazunari’s legs. The latter looks over his shoulder, red pupils in a sea of black gleaming.

“Oh, Shin-chan, you have no idea.” It’s the last thing he can say before he moves. All other words and thoughts are blown out of him, when Kazunari slides over Shintarou’s cock, still showing his back to his lover. Steadying himself, he puts his hands behind him on the warm body. Feeling how tense Shintarou had gotten in the short amount of time it had taken to prepare, Kazunari doesn’t think of his own when he slides down all the way. For a second, he misses Shintarou’s hands on his hips; one would roam his body, the other might find his cock to play with. It’s okay not to have it, this once, for all the other fun stuff that Kazunari is going to put him through.

His plan works wonders. Riding Shintarou allows him to command the pace they go in, and how rough it ends up. On top, doing it reverse sitting like this, Kazunari cannot go super fast. He has to take his time, has to enable his hips to circle at leisure, careful not to let Shintarou slide out of him. The sounds prove to be dirtier like this too, when he moves more unhurried. Dragging his ass back and forth with Shintarou inside of him, Kazunari closes his eyes, letting his head fall back and his jaw slacken. His shoulders are up through how intense the sex gets, while he feels Shintarou’s impatience. It runs through his hips and his legs, bent at the knees in front of Kazunari. The latter lets his body be as heavy as it can, not giving Shintarou much room to go wild.

It has to be something about today. Maybe it’s the leather straps, or the fact that Shintarou is bound, held back, not able to have much say in the matter (although if he’d said the word, Kazunari would free him in an instant). The wall he raised to protect Kazunari might have caused him lots of trouble, and the food they had eaten might not have been enough for him. As it stands, Kazunari feels the heavy throb deep in his ass, and he smiles when the sounds between them become slicker, more wet and savage.

He hears it when Shintarou keeps his lips as tightly shut as he can. Kazunari watches him at last, the full beauty of Shintarou losing his inhibitions and his sanity before him. Brows drawn, sweat rolling down his temples, the nose flaring trying to get air in his lungs. He keeps on riding him, doesn’t feel the need to say anything to make Shintarou come faster. He doesn’t need to, as his lover spills his seed all out inside of him, finally grunting out Kazunari’s name as he comes.

He stops himself from moving, eyes fluttering shut and skywards when his body relaxes, feeling Shintarou shivering beneath him. All wet inside of him. Lifting himself off, Kazunari continues to shove his ass across Shintarou’s stomach, until he reaches his face. Taking the half-hard cock in in hand, he licks the residue clean off, humming at the taste. While Shintarou makes an attempt to perform anilingus, Kazunari hovers too far away, not liking it as much without Shintarou’s hands on top of his ass. Instead, he switches around, easing himself to Shintarou’s side and lying half on top of his body, leg lazy across the still taut stomach.

“...Takao, what are you doing?”

“Mhnn? What does it look like, Shin-chan?” Red pupils meet red, while Kazunari’s easy smile on his face betrays nothing of what’s he’s doing. His hand is between his and Shintarou’s body, lazy as he pleasures himself, cock lying on the unmoving large beast beside him.

“Takao.”

“Try again-n, oh.” Kazunari closes his eyes and lets his head lie on Shintarou’s chest, easing his orgasm down a notch. He doesn’t need to come right now, but he’d like to keep himself hard, and tease the impatient man next to him. Shintarou huffs, and Kazunari feels his eyes all over him. 

“Kazunari.”

“Y-e-s?” He drawls, tongue flicking a deep line in Shintarou’s muscled pecs. 

“...Finish it on top of me.” 

Laughing, Kazunari gets what he means, and acts according to the tight-lipped request. He returns to spread his legs beside Shintarou’s body, his knees brushing the velvet stuffing. One hand on Shintarou’s chest, he watches him, being watched in turn, and increases the movements of his hand. Unravelling on top of Shintarou is something he’s willing to do, feels safe to do, and cannot stop doing when Shintarou’s eyes are all over him. Until all of Kazunari is all over Shintarou, and he collapses after he comes. 

“Kazunari.”

“Wha-at?” Whining like a child being told to go to school, Kazunari doesn’t open his eyes, just moves his nose towards the general direction of the other’s face. He’s about to nap for a few moments, loving how they feel all sweaty and naked on top of each other. 

“My arms, Kazunari.” 

“Yes, yes, getting to it.” Arms sliding under Shintarou for warmth and safety, Kazunari pulls off a breakdance move, lifting his legs up high. In an instant, his kagune appears, and his talons cut the leather straps up, not caring how much they cost might have been. Shintarou can pay for it later.

Arms around his shoulders, the loving taped fingers teasing the top of his hair before vanishing in the silky mop of black hair, Shintarou hums his sweet approval of Kazunari’s weight and ideas. It’s the last thing Kazunari hears, along with the words ‘I’m sorry’ and ‘I love you’.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHAHHAHAAA I 'forgot' to mention that this is in the same universe as the aomomo of this series, and as such, whoever read 'Becoming of a sanctuary', might have guessed that Midorima is a ghoul too~ (Well okay, Hannah didn't guess and basically screamed beta reading this)(LEONA YOU DIDN'T GUESS IT EITHER H A H).  
> I even hinted at Aomine and Momoi in the last chapter ww
> 
> Yahoooo~~~ I'm realllyyyyy happy how this turned out after having it in my files for so long!! I knew what to write and how the story would develop after I talked with Leona about it, then had trouble adding the parts it needed. But Leona is my ongoing, ever-lasting inspiration and a huge motivator and confidence booster!! So of course I did my best to finish it and make it beautiful for her.
> 
> I hope everyone else who read this enjoys it too ;v; Thanks so much or taking your time~~~

**Author's Note:**

> Just so we're clear, I don't hate Akashi or Rakuzan, but they do make good antagonists :D It would be fun to write more about them for this au... maybe one day~~


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